A common inhabitant of human intestines is the bacterium Escherichia coli, named after the German pediatrician Theodor Escherich, who identified it in 1885. A cell of this bacterium in a nutrient-broth medium divides into two cells every 20 minutes. The initial population of a culture is 50 cells. (a) Find the relative growth rate.
k = hr−1
(b) Find an expression for the number of cells after t hours.
P(t) =
(c) Find the number of cells after 6 hours.
cells
(d) Find the rate of growth after 6 hours. (Round your answer to the nearest integer.)
cells/h
(e) When will the population reach a million cells?
h